Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1887-11-17
HISTORY OF HISTORY"


\ Lecture uprItverrd ny >. ". BWruetkh.
at Phtibrook. Saturday Evc., Nov. .ath.
History, Napoleon said, is n collection Of
venerable lies which people have commonly
agreed to aeeep. az true.
Whether this, il we may regard it
definition of what is called history. wasever
true we may doubt. that il is false as a
definition of recently written history we
may feel assured.
In order that we may treat this subject
unlerstandingly, let us first inquire what
History is. History, from the Greek mea ms
ctymologically to ascertai++-As-issssssis.ss
hence, an account Of the circumstances
thus ascertained. In it's most ordinary
sense i; is rest rctcd to narrative Of trans
actions in the order ,,i time, with. or with
out critical or philosophical comments,
and as such alone we shall consider il.
We shall first begin with Il brief account
uf the process Of historical narrative from
it's primitive origin to our own times. we
shall next enumerate the recent modi;ica-
tions which are more and more TRANSFORMS
ing it from II simple record to II complex
department Of study. and shall conclude
with few words on the necessity Tor and
method of obtaining an acquaintance
with it.
Ia it's origin history regarded rs IA method
Of recording events in indisiingui,habe
from oral tradition which seldom preserves
the memory of any except the most extra
ordinary events beyond three orfourgener-
atioi,s, hut little would have been known
about the earlier events il there presea va
tion had been left entirely to this method,
but Homer and other poets by means oi
poems similar to the Iiiad and odyssey
transferred the care OF history from oral
tradition to the ballad. These ballads
were songs composed and sung 10y the poet
To the accompaniment of the harpor other
stringed Instruments. They were heroic in
their character and commemoratad some
important historical event, or the deeds
and actions OF some renowned warrior or
group Of warriors. The most notable
among the ballads are those relating to
the voyage OF the A,go, the most ancient
voyage of discovery mentioned by classical
writer's. The L;,bors Of Hercules. "a man
of such wonderful strength that he killed
two serpe,rts by pulling them in two with
his hands while yet II babe in hs cradle,
and in manhood supprted the world on
his shoulders while Atlas went tn the gar
den %! the IIesperides for for the goldlenap-
pies. The wandsrings of Ulysses and the
fall of Troy. All of these Ballads are part
ly mythical. Some have believed them
wholly so. but rF''. ScfIIeiiiiaiis 3 recent 'Iis:
cover es ON the east shores Of the Mediter-
anean have proved that Troy at least did
exist. \ considerable advance was made
we sec, when tradition assumed the form
OF ballads which could bc easily relnem-
bered and repeated, bat no authentic rec
ord could he kept before the Invention of
writing. The first Application of this art
was To monumental purposes, and along
with the Invocation oi dcities. Chroncal,
of the deeds of kings began to appear on
the Egyptian temples.
The invention ri papyrus, paper made
from the fiber OF certain reeds. was II step
further in advance, from this period (prob-
ably about 3,ooo years Il. e., the Esyp-
tians had "A written history meager. it is
true, ii We may Judge from the fragment /,
that have come down to Us, bat not sub
iect To the constant changes omissions and
additions oI tradition or the ballads.
The practice of recording events in writing
spread in due Time to the Hebrew ,l'hociic-
la, blIi,...p A Il
but the pcrsuit Of history as IA brau,n oi
literary art Was reserved to the Greeks.
We do not class our Bible az II historical
work although much oi history is recorded
therein, iur The Bible docs not answer to
oar definition of II history, being an in-
sprcd work, not something found out by
inquiry, nor is It's object the narration oi
even ior historical purposes.
About the middle vi inc hith century Il.
g.. lierodotus, ol iI.ilicanassts. COMPOSED
the first work ialiy answering Ia our idea
oi history, presentiis the resait- ui hi, own
inquiries INTO "A series oi previous transac-
ti"ns, IN ~ thoroughly artistic lorna. As n
mere narrator, tine works ol Ilcrodotus
nave never Deen SURPASSED to thls day, not
nitnrtdiiulng mr. lr,stacnt cretiulity he Is
iuiiy impressed with the principle tina, 4,
historian = first duty IL H. ascertain and
record the truth, but mis- invest -atious were.
SUN ana some oi the events were mar.
Vicious that soon after the rcnaissaic,,
period, some would b. critics unable to
bciieve what they ,uii not understand.
dubbod him the Father of Lies, and h,
<pccubied III the opinion ol scholars of That
time position similar to that of M m
chaus.n' oi to-day, but subsequent iuves-
tigation has revealed the fact tnat Heroic
tus. like some moder writer's, was better
informed than his critics.
\ considerable st.'p in advance w.s taken
10y the next great historian, Thucydid e..
who, not content with merely recording
events and rclatin. he actions OF men. en-
dravors to Penetrate into their motives
and To investigate not merely incidents
but Ia determining the causes of changes
IN human alfitirs. As iicrodotus is the
iirst great narrator, 80 H. Thu ydidies ih,.
iirat great philosophical historian, aad
almost all good history since their tim.
li;;s been written on the model afforded hv
one ar the other. Although Thucydid /,
was but thirteen years younger than
'ierouoius. the difference bet seen them is
very striHing. 1t always remains thr honor
al ii"rudotus to have invented thr art of
history, but from him to Thucydi,irs this
art has made great Progress botn in stylt'
ana method. flerodotu, tells eVrryt hin.
mat Ii interesting but tells il simply be
cause il is interesting. while 1harydidr,
tells only that which has "A dir,c ct h..triu.
ON his subject, and tells il only on account
of that bearing. iIerodotu, arrangs his
materials 50 as To make them all enter
iato one general yicw: with Thusy.lilir,
there j, very little arrangement; hr takes
the materials az he find. them and his la
por consists la finding out the motives ol
the acting persons. and the causes of the
visible effect, thus his method belongs To :,